guide prep

[rufus george]

What did I get myself into? I'm addicted to this new hobby:D

I've got a couple of question regarding guide prep.
Must the feet sit flat on the blank? i noticed I have to push the guide down a little for the feet to lay flat on the blank.

rufus

[narfpoit]

The guide feet should be as flat to the blank as possible. This may require a little flexing or some grinding. I like to use my dremel with a polishing wheel. first I remove the coating from the bottom of the foot and shape it to fit the blank then I give the foot a sharp edge so the thread will lay nice and smooth. This is a double edge sword though because if you are not careful it will cut your thread too. ANyway I hope that helps

[rufus george]

thanks!!

[Rod Builder]

Flat is better, at least in this case...as mentioned you may also want to grind down the top of the guide foot and create a longer ramp slope. Make the leading edge of the foot real thin and the thread will run up easier and the longer ramp angle will look better when wrapped.

[Heaver]

Guide feet are my pet peeve on the rods I build.

Personally I like to bend the guide feet until only the tips of the guide feet feet touch first, and there is only 2-3 mm (1/8") space between the rest of the guide foot and the underwrap/blank . When you begin wrapping the guide on the tension will tend to flatten the guide feet flat onto the blank.

After grinding on the a grinding wheel mounted on a drill press I burnish the bottom of the guide to remove any burrs. I do this my rubbing the underside of the guide firmly on round metal stock (screwdriver shank). It takes care of any burrs that may dig into the blank or underwrap.

I never grind the underside, but grind the top of the guide foot only until they are well tapered well up onto the guide foot. This allows the thread to easily climb onto the guide foot when wrapping. If you grind the underside you risk raising the edge of the guide foot up causing the the thread to not climb up onto the guide easily.

The idea is to taper the guide foot until it is knife-edged to allow the thread to climb the guide foot, and to give a nice transition and shape to the wrap.

Lou

[Fisheadgib]

I always bend the guide feet so that they sit absolutly flat on the blank. I want to insure that the guide feet have as much contact with the blank as possible. This reduces the chance of the finish cracking around the guides in a heavy flex.